Bethphage to Herodian...

Matt Davis
Land & Bible
9.19.07

Jerusalem Approaches

It never ceases to amaze me when I can catch a glimpse of God’s genius. Today it was a glimpse at His planning of the land of His chosen people, Israel. We were focusing on the approaches or routes that lead to Jerusalem. From the beginning God had a plan for the layout of the country and the geography plays a huge role in Israel’s success and protection. From the east, coming from Jericho, on the Ascent of Adumim anyone traveling would have to go over the Mount of Olives. And of course any travel in the land of Israel is going to be, for the majority of the time, will be on the ridges. Travel will rarely be in the valleys, just because it is harder to go up and down in elevation.
Our first stop on the Mount of Olives was at Bethphage in garden overlooking Bethany. Bethany was where Jesus raised Lazarus up from the dead in John 11. And if you think about it one of the most amazing miracles. I mean if someone has power over death in that one instance it is very convincing, this is one of the reasons why many saw and believed in Jesus. This miracle goes against the grain when it comes to the publicity that it received. In Jesus’ ministry He would be telling people to not tell anyone about these miracles that He was performing. But this one was different. Messengers came to Jesus and told Him that he was sick, but Jesus waits 2 days before He sets His sights on Bethany. And during His journey Lazarus dies and Mary comes to tell Him. Now Jesus knew that this was going to happen, and that there were going to be people following Him to Bethany, and He also knew that there would be mourners there. So as the people were there watching and listening to what Jesus said, “Lazarus, come out!” they would have thought he was crazy. But this was to prove His authority over sin.
Many other events in the life of Christ happened on the Mount of Olives. Jesus’ ascension takes place here, as well as the start of the triumphal entry, and the Olivet discourse. Many aspects of these events that I have never thought about were helpful to me today. Take the ascension for instance, I have never really thought about how that really happened. Did Jesus just take off like a rocket ship and go up into the sky, go through the atmosphere, up past the moon, past Pluto, and off until the people couldn’t see Him anymore? Well, the bible says that He was taken up into a cloud and the cloud is what probably took him away. And this event is how He will return, which is exciting.
After the Mount of Olives we headed to the Ketef Hinnom, or the Shoulder of Hinnom, where two silver amulets were found with the oldest inscription of biblical text. The priestly blessing from Numbers 6 is what is found on them. This archaeological find really hurts liberal scholars who want to say that the Pentateuch was written later, because of the age of the inscription which is 600 B.C.
One of the most impressive places we visited was the Herodian. This was a fortress that Herod built up for himself on an existing hill making it on very high ground. He could see the dead sea and the back side of the Mount of Olives. From Josephus’ writings we find our that he wanted to make a memorial for himself, and so he decorates it very extravagantly. This is where Herod wanted to be buried. Archelaus’s, Herod’s son, brought out all Herod's ornaments to adorn the pomp of the funeral. And Josephus goes on to describe all of the things that went into putting on this funeral: purple robes, gold, jewels, diadems on his head, and a scepter in his right hand. This was the King of the Jews (politically speaking), and no one liked him at all. Now contrast that with Jesus King of the Jews (spiritually speaking) who rivaled Herod at age 2. Jesus barely got a tomb to be buried in and He is the one who can save a soul. The radical nature of Jesus’ humility is so convicting to my own heart. This is not to say that Jesus will never be the ultimate king and rule over all with all authority, but his first coming showed us His humility. And at Christ’s “lowest” point here on earth, that was really His greatest time. He conquered death and sin. Herod’s highest point could never compare to anything Jesus did.
Thinking about Christ’s work on the cross should make us love Him more and more. This is the man that saved our souls. This is the man we worship. This is the man that cares for us. This is the man that is our king. What an amazing God we serve.